Choke Questions ?

niceshot

niceshot

New member
You guys who shoot autoloaders which choke do you use and why? do you change as the season progresses and conditions dictate? if and when you change chokes do you also change shells/loads?
 
I put the IC in my Benelli and rarely do I ever change during the season. I think with today's premium shells that today's IC was yesterday's Modified. I also hunt a lot of public land and have to use non-toxic shot. I use steel and the IC choke seems to work very well. So whether it's lead or steel I stay with IC choke. But I am hunting behind and shooting over a pointing dog so most of my shots are under 40 yards.

It depends a lot on your style of hunting. A person that is doing a lot of blocking may be taking some longer shots and want to go with a tighter choke. I guess there is no "one size fits all" approach here. How your gun patterns various loads will also be another factor.

I guess the answer is: Find the choke and load that works best for you and your gun.
 
I agree with Dakotazeb. It is all about what works for you and your gun. I hunt with labs and shoot a IC all year long. It works well in my 20ga with #5 copper plated.
 
I agree with Dakotazeb also but will add one more detail.......You really should pattern your shotgun at your average killing range and load. While shooting competitive trap and skeet, I reloaded all my loads and patterned any new combination......it just became a habit and really does tell you a lot, you'll be surprised!!!!!!!!! It not only tells you how your load is performing at a given distance but will tell you if your point of impact is high, low, left or right and if your shotgun needs to be adjusted so that your point of impact is where you are aiming. I shoot IC 95% of the time in a 20 gauge auto all year long.
 
Mild weather during the early season I will use a IC with 5's when the birds are sitting a little tighter. As the season progresses and the birds become wilder and gain their winter coats I often will switch to modified and #4's. If I stay honest on my ranges and keep my shots to 40 yards and in I've experienced very few cripples with those combinations. I've done a fair amount of patterning and know that if I do my part very few birds are going to fly through those patterns.

I must add that the differences I've experienced between #6 shot and in some cases #5 and that of plated #4 shot is astounding with regards to crippling and lost birds. Now that I am using #4's I experience far fewer cripples and are usually dead where they fall. The pellets seem to penetrate all the way through leaving few if any cut feathers or shot in the meat as well.
 
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Pick a distance to which you will normally shoot at. Let say you will not take a shot any further than 40 yards but most shots will be in that 20-35 yard range. If your pattern has good coverage (density) at that range than it will also work to 40. Your looking for even distribution in a 30 inch circle. no gaping holes. I would find some 4 foot square sheets of paper if possible (heavier the better) and tack them up to a sheet of plywood or cardboard. Patterning is a tedious process and you will need to test each choke/load combination with at least 4 patterns to get an idea as no two will be exactly the same. Shoot one pattern at a time then draw a 30" circle around the largest mass of pellet strikes to give you a picture of how it works. Pick a choke and load combination that gives you the best coverage for your selected ranges.

One note: larger shot usually dictates a larger load size and or tighter choke as there are fewer pellets in the load and sometimes larger pellets are needed to get the job done especially late season. With a 20 your selection is narrowed some over the 12, but still possible.
 
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I have been using the factory mod choke in my 391 but will probably get a LM for the gun as it is my favorite choke and the one I use most for registered SC with my 391 sporting model. I have been using the Federal PF 1 3/8 ounce load in either 4 or 5 shot but got a buy on the Kent Ultimate pheasant load and used them in SD this year and they worked great. Those were 1 3/8 #5. For non-toxic I took some Black Cloud 3 inch #2 and used them as well and dropped birds stone dead with it-all on private land. IC would work fine but I tend to prefer tighter chokes for my hunting.
 
birdshooter said:
Mild weather during the early season I will use a IC with 5's when the birds are sitting a little tighter. As the season progresses and the birds become wilder and gain their winter coats I often will switch to modified and #4's. If I stay honest on my ranges and keep my shots to 40 yards and in I've experienced very few cripples with those combinations. I've done a fair amount of patterning and know that if I do my part very few birds are going to fly through those patterns.

I must add that the differences I've experienced between #6 shot and in some cases #5 and that of plated #4 shot is astounding with regards crippling and lost birds. Now that I am using #4's I experience far fewer cripples and are usually dead where they fall. The pellets seem to penetrate all the way through leaving few if any cut feathers or shot in the meat as well.
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birdshooter, your response is the best and most concise two paragraphs on choke, shot size, and killing wild rooster pheasants that I have ever read. This should printed in every states hunting handbook.
 
Appreciate the comment niceshot. Just a few things I've learned from 35 or so years of chasing those long tailed Houdinis. I just hate to lose cripples and make every effort to do my part to make clean kills. Not rocket science, just trial and error.
 
Great thread! I had a box of plated #4 at the start of the season and I was deadly with it. Ran out of that and had to settle for inexpensive lead from the hardware store (we have very limited hunting supply stores here in Nova Scotia). Given that the season was almost over (closes Dec 15) I didn't bother ordering the good stuff - figured I'd get it for next year. Big mistake. After a VERY frustrating season for various reasons, the dog put up a beautiful big rooster in the closing hours of the season. I hit him and down he went. As the dog crossed the marsh to go get him he got up and flew away :( :( :( . I have now ordered the hardened shot that I like so much but I've also saved some of the cheap stuff to do some patterning. I shoot an OU wiht IC in the bottom and Mod in the top. Usually I just shoot bottom-top but if the dog gets birdy (flushing lab) at a longer range I will flip over to the top barrel. This is the first pheasant that I've ever crippled and lost (keep in mind, this is only my third season - season 1 (1 bird) season 2 (9 birds) season 3 (3 birds)). Anyhow, I just bought a big roll of brown "Kraft" paper at the post-office. It's only 36" wide, but it will have to do. I'll be going out for a session of patterning during the holidays.
-Croc
 
I use two Briley tubes for my Montefeltro 12 gauge--Skeet and Light Modified. I never took my Skeet tube out this season...I usually shoot a federal 2 3/4 ", 1 3/8 oz load of 5's that travel 1500 fps. I shot 100+ birds this season and lost very few--under 5--and made some shots that surprised me due to their length. If I make it back out I will put in my LM tube and switch to # 4's.
 
I mostly shoot sxs, but the Benelli 12 and Browning 2000-20 that I have tubes for never get the ic tubes removed. Anybody want to buy some spare tubes?
ic and modified in two sxs. Ic and full in another which is kind of unusual, m&f in another. I just bought a Franchi Destino 20, with tubes but I have not shot it. Ic and mod I am sure for phesants.
I shot 3 birds yesterday with 20 1&1/8 "baby mags"Same load as a std 16ga. I was a little dissapointed as two of them were kind of shot up tho they were left and right flyers, not close straight aways from the dog.
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POT NEWS
 
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Hey BB or Uncle Buck, do either of you have any suggestions on extended choke tubes for my Winchester Select O/U? I've been debating and doing some research and I'm just not sure what I want yet. I also just bought a Winchester SX3 3.5" that I'm looking at getting the Carlson's Dead Coyote Choke Tube for. Any ideas or suggestions? Thanks
 
Are you debating specific chokes, like IC or M or F, or, are you debating different companies, like Briley or Tru Choke? I like Briley, and I think more open chokes are the way to go unless you're hunting coyotes or turkeys...I like Skeet, IC, LM...I think Sk and LM in a double would be a really good combo...
 
I'm not really sure if I want to go with extended tubes or not, the manufacturer isn't really a problem as Briley looks like that would be the way that I go. Do the extended tubes help the pattern that much to notice a difference or not? Right now I have the factory IC in the top barrel and the M in the bottom barrel, I was just curious about the extended tubes, sorry should of have been more specific wtih my question to start off with...:eek: As far as my SX3 I have talked to alot of people that shoot the Dead Coyote loads and they recommend that you use the Carlson's Dead Coyote Tube if you want a true and accurate pattern. I guess that my main question is are the extended tubes really a help as far as for my O/U. Thanks again...:D
 
I've no idea what the thinking is behind extended tubes. From what I've observed, the sporting clays is where they started. Extra shooting plane ?
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Aprilia rs125
 
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I've no idea what the thinking is behind extended tubes. From what I've observed, the sporting clays is where they started. Extra shooting plane ?
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Is F
 
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Uncle Buck said:
I've no idea what the thinking is behind extended tubes.
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Easier removal/installation is the main thinking, along with choke identification which is usually stamped or engraved on the end for easy ID.

Patterning improvement is subject to controversy as each gun/load/choke combination is different. I think there is some merit to using longer chokes with steel or some of the newer non-tox loads for shooting at longer ranges, but shooting lead at shorter ranges I haven't personally seen much advantage.
 
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